Bridge for bow instruments



(No Model.)

M. W. WHITE.

BRIDGE FORBOW INSTRUMENTS. No. 594,129. Patented Nov. 23, 1897.

WITNESSES: IWENTB Tm: Noam ruins co, PNOTO-LITHO,WASH1NG nnnnnn cv endsof said recesses being separated by a MAURICE WV. WHITE, OF SOMERVILLE,HALF TO FREDERICK A. SUCK,

ATENT Enron.

MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR or ONE- OF BOSTON, MAssAcnUsETTs.

BRIDGE FOR BOW INSTRUMENTS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 594,129, dated November23, 1897.

Application filed December '7, 1896.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known t-hatI, MAURIcE W. WHITE, of Somerville, in the county ofMiddlesex and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Bridges for Bow Instruments, of which thefollowing is a specification.

This invention relates to bridges employed to support the strings overthe resonant portion of the body of a bow instrument, such as a violinor a Violoncello; and it has for its object to provide a bridge whichshall be resilient along a line extending vertically from each string tothe body of the instrument, so that each string shall have a resilientsupport, the resilience being such as to impart a desirable quality tothe tone of the string.

The invention consists in the improvements which I will now proceed todescribe and claim.

. Of the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification,Figure 1 represents a side vview of a violin-bridge embodying myinvention. Fig. 2 represents a similar View showing a modification.

The same letters of reference indicate the same parts in both figures.

My improved bridge, which is or may be of the usual or any suitablegeneral form and has a base a a, adapted to bear upon the resonant bodyof the instrument, and a top I), which is notched or otherwise adaptedto support and prevent lateral displacement of the strings, is providedwith two recesses c 0, extending inwardly in opposite directions fromits ends between the base and top, the inner contracted portion or Waistd, thus dividing the bridge into a lower portion or base and an upperportion or crown. Above the waist d and extending across the median lineof the bridge is a central orifice e, the sides of which are preferablycurved, as shown, giving the orifice e comparatively deep rentrantangles, with curved faces between said angles. Above the recesses c andat opposite sides of the median line of the bridge are two elongatedside orifices f f, which are approximately horizontal and are preferablyenlarged at their end portions, said orifices f being in this case shownas slightly curved, while their enlargements are arranged to give inconnection Serial No. 614,815. (No model.)

with the longitudinal curvature a slightly ogee form to the orifices. Itwill be seen that the central orifice e and side orifices ff are soarranged relatively to each other and to the recesses c c that theportions of the bridge between the said recesses and the side orifices ff form resilient arms connecting the waist d with the top 1), these armsbeing adapted to furnish a resilient support along a vertical line drawnfrom either string to the body of the instrument. I have found that abridge of this construction gives a quality of tone which is superior toanything that I have ever heard produced by the use of bridges ofordinary construction or of any bridges that I have heretofore known.

In Fig. 2 I show a modification in which the central orifice e isextended above the side orifices f f, and laterally extended at itsupper end to form outwardly-curved continuations of the resilient armsabove described. This construction modifies the tone to some extent, andis desirable in producing certain effects.

In both forms illustrated side portions of the central orifice c extendunder the orifices f, and thereby form the resilient arms abovementioned, each of said arms consisting of two meeting portionsoppositely and slightly inclined from the horizontal, the lower ends ofthe two arms meeting at the waist d.

I claim- I A bridge for bow instruments, having the contracted portionor waist cl dividing the bridge into a base'portion and a crown por--tion, the central orifice e, and the side orifices f in said crown,portions of the said central orifice extending under the side orificesand thereby forming between them horizontal resilient arms connectingthe top or string-supporting portion of the crown with the waist, andimparting resilience to thecentral portion of said crown.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification, in thepresence of twofsubscribing witnesses, this 4th day of De cember, A. D.1896.

MAURICE W. "WHITE.

Witnesses:

O. F. BROWN, A. D. HARRISON.

